The Redemption Line
by Narti
Summary: "Back so soon?" her corrosive voice boomed in my chest. "I was just beginning to miss you," she turned to face me now, Her yellow gaze rested upon me. "Oh, wait, no I wasn't,"
1. Space!

This is my Portal two fan fiction :D This does contain spoilers for those of you who have not finished the whole game. So please do before reading this.

Also, for the sake of the story, the cores are people. Its just easier this way. :/

Enjoy! :D

* * *

The warm breeze rippled through the grain, turning the field into a sea of shimmering gold. The sky was overcast with patches of blue here and there. I looked up to the dreary clouds and wondered how long it had been since I left the facility. My back rested on the side of its entrance shack, knowing all too well what was going on just a few yards beneath me.  
It seemed like months since that day. I had lost track of time after about the thirtieth day on my own. The loneliness seemed the most torturous. There was plenty of food to be caught here, but the lack of contact with anyone crushed me. The companion cube didn't help much. He just sat around. Every time I looked at him I thought of GLaDOS. Her last words to me, the choir of the turrets, everything. The last melancholy feeling of freedom as I rode the lift up to the surface. Some part of me missed the place; it was all I ever knew.  
The sun had turned the sky a pink color as it began to lower onto the horizon. A particular circular cloud drifting by reminded me of someone. He was stranded in space, probably a million miles away. Wheatley. Inside me brewed an uncertain emotion that I couldn't pin point. I hated that blue core for treating me like trash after everything I did. But, something inside of me still admires him. I rested my arm on my companion cube and watched the sun set while I wondered where in the universe he was now.

(:]-(o)-[:)

"SPACE! Wheatley! I can't believe it! Can you? I can't! I'm in SPACE!" the orange glow from the Space Core's eye reflected off my glasses. I floated nearer to him, rolling my eyes as I have been listening to the same outbursts for, what seemed like, forever.  
"Yes! We are in space!" I snapped. "I think we would probably know that by now! It's been a bloody eternity!"  
"An eternity is not a portion of time, it is a realization of time as a lineal construct- that was never real," the Fact Core floated between us, unleashing another one of his pointless facts. The Space Core drifted steadily toward me.  
"Space..." he whispered awestruck. He floated in an uncomfortably close distance before veering to the left of me and finally leaving me alone.  
Rick, the Adventure Core, bobbed over in front of me.  
"Man," he sighed. "It's times like these when I wish there was gravity so I could smash your face in," my expression changed to blank irritation.  
"For the last time, it wasn't me that tried to kill her! The evil was from the body! It controlled me!" the airless vacuum caused my body to swivel until I was upside down.  
"You keep making up these excuses, but that pretty lady had no reason to be treated like that!" his eye slowly shut. "I can almost see her gorgeous face now," Rick rolled off into his own thoughts, leaving me with an unpleasant memory. A memory of monster. No matter how hard I apologize or explain the situation to the other cores, no one believes me.  
"Who am I convincing?" I muttered to myself. 'Nobody but me,' I thought. And that wasn't even working. I had even persuaded my own mind that I was an evil, ruthless moron who would try to kill the one person who helped me. I had no idea what came over me that day. The scared look in her eyes is forever burned into my memory. GLaDOS was right, I am a moron.  
"Ouch!" The sound of the Space Core broke my thoughts. He had seemed to have run into an enormous floating object. It was about fifty feet tall, twice that size in with and was an overall beige color. It had several appendages facing toward the moon. The familiar pronged spiral logo of Aperture Science was stamped onto the side, along with the title: "Aperture Science Moon Rock Harvester".  
"Oh my," I gazed up the length of the large craft. A purple glow appeared at my side.  
"The 'Aperture Science Moon Rock Harvester' was invented by Cave Johnson in 1968, which led to moon-rock poisoning and later the death of him and many other Aperture staff,"  
"Oh shut up, no one wants to hear your history lesson," Rick materialized next to the Fact Core.  
"Moon? Moon is in space!" the last of our group fell in line next to me.  
I uncontrollably drifted toward the ship and hit its edge which sent me sharply to the left. I spun randomly.  
"Woa!" I gasped. The reflection of blue and white caught my eye as I steadied myself, despite my steady drifting. I couldn't believe it, I was hurtling toward Earth!  
"Guys! Follow me!" I turned to the cores behind me. "Hit the edge of that thing there and we can make it back to earth! We can go home!"  
"Home is not where the heart is," the Fact core rammed into the corner and followed behind me. "It is inside your rib cage,"  
I swiftly grabbed the arm of the Fact Core. "Come on!" I urged as we floated farther away from the two remaining comrades.  
"But! But! But! But space!" the Space Core spun nervously.  
"Not for you!" Rick punched him sending him in our direction. The green eyed core made his way to the satellite and soon the four of us made our way back to earth.


	2. There You Are

Also play Porta 2 Co-op. This storyline becomes relevant too... Not in this chapter! But soon... :) Thank you!

* * *

Darkness caressed the atmosphere around me. I was protected by the gloom by the light of the small fire in front of me. I sat stiffly on my companion cube; it was leeching the warmth from under me. I remained there, despite how uncomfortable it's rough surface was.  
"Cara mia, cara Mia..." I sang quietly. It was the triumphant song of the turrets. The beauty of the song still reverberated in my ears. I still held onto that little gift after all this time. That and my cube. I stroked it's smooth surface and shivered at its intense smoothness and it's low temperature.  
I poked the smoldering grasses of my fire with a stick sending a flurry of sparks into the sky, disappearing soon after. My eyes lingered in the black above me. The overcast sky of the early twilight melted away bringing a clear night. Each star was visible, including a large pale streak across the abyss.  
Movement in the sky caught my eye. At first I thought they were falling stars. But, four descending objects became visible. They gradually became bigger as they neared earth. A familiar scream split the air as they landed a few miles behind the Aperture Shack.  
"SPAAAAAAAAAAACE!"  
I sprang to my feet. It couldn't have been. My heart accelerated in my chest. Without thinking I sprinted toward the object's crash site, leaving behind a dying fire and my companion cube.

Out of breath, I skidded to a halt. I rested my hands on my knees and looked behind me. The shack was far behind. I knew I was nearing where they crashed. I caught my breath then lightly jogged along, aware of the now rising sun. The cool morning air gave my tired body relief. Jogging soon evolved into walking as I perused my quest to discover what landed out here.  
I soon walked up upon a large ditch that had been camouflaged by the flat land and tall grasses. Staring down into it, it appeared to be a twenty foot drop. In the center of the pit was what looked like a city. The diameter of the pit itself I estimated to be several miles.  
I slid down the loose soil slope until I reached the bottom of the pit. Weak looking white structures were scattered about in the large valley. I rested my hand on one of the white surfaces. The familiar chalky panel rested beneath my fingertips. The configuration of the structures seemed to be shelters some sort. They seemed to be damaged by the elements, walls toppled over, mold and moss crawling up the side of the walls.  
I began slowly walking throughout the maze of white walls. Something about this place had a ghostly familiarity. To the left of me, drilled into the wall of the pit, was a tunnel. It was blocked off by a chain fence and barbed wire. Inside were more white panels. The destination looked far off.  
I stopped at the sight of a seven foot tall panel propped up against one of the small structures. At the top of the large plank were the dreaded words 'Aperture Science' printed in bold black letters. My heart raced. In shock I backed up a few paces from the towering board.  
"Hey there Gorgeous, long time no see," a voice from behind me made me jump. Rick walked up to me and put a hand on my shoulder wearing the same devilish smirk he had before.  
"Oh," my throat felt suddenly dry. "Hi, Rick," I remembered he was one of the three corrupted cores I used to take down Wheatley. "Where," I looked up to the sky "Did you come from?"  
"Well, my adventure started in deep space, the others were scared out of their processors..."  
"Wait," I interrupted, "'The others?'" I echoed.  
"Yea, The Space guy, Smarty-pants, and Wheatley." Rick clarified. "We all crash landed around here somewhere..." He looked around.  
"Where are they?" I asked, my adrenaline surging.  
"They couldn't have gone far," he said quietly. "You know those morons aren't really worth looking for," I ignored him. I have been alone for long enough. I began to search for the other three cores in the strange Aperture ruins.

(:]-(o)-[:)

"Argg," I managed to slowly open my eyes. I had landed on my back from the crash last night. Entering the earth's atmosphere was a rough ride. I didn't know how the others fared though, they were nowhere near me. The head of a black crow blocked my view of the blue sky. "Ahh! Bird! Bird!" It was perched on my forehead. I stood to my feet and managed to shoo her away the process. "Lovely," a small white blot stained my shoulder.  
"Space? Why are you so far away? I miss you! Come back! Space!" I heard the familiar rant of the Space Core. The sound of shifting debris echoed from where his voice came from around the corner. "Hey! Hey lady! Take me back to space!" puzzled, I followed his voice and ran into my small party around the corner. Rick, the Space Core and... Chell!  
"See, there's the blue moron," Rick walked to the right of her. The Space core lay on the ground, staring into the sky. When Chell's eyes finally found me, they're gaze filled with a mixture of fear and anger. I knew our old relationship we had when I woke her up would never last, it was all my fault.  
"Hey there," I said uncomfortably. "It's been awhile, eh partner? You look fit, well, thinner than before anyways," I scratched the back of my neck. She continued to stare a while longer before she spoke to me for the first time.  
"I'll never forget what you did, Wheatley," I was taken aback by her words. But, I knew if I ever saw her again, this would be her reaction. I just didn't expect it to be so sudden.  
"About that, I wanted to say that I am truly, sincerely sorry about what happened. For everything. I'm sorry I was bossy, and monstrous. And, I'm... Just sorry." I closed my eyes as I waited for her response. The sound of footsteps came toward me, breaking the awkward silence. I opened my eyes a tiny slit to see her standing looking up at me, eyes blazing with anger.. "So um, what do you say? Forgive me and pick me up, just like old times?" I held out my hand. Her expression remained unchanged.  
I glanced at the other two. They merely shrugged. My old partner, I knew she would never forgive me. Chell suddenly raised her hand and placed it into mine and gave it a brisk shake. "So, you forgive me?" I tried to keep my stuttering voice under control. She released her hand and replied with a punch in my side. "Agggh! What was that for?"  
"For everything," Chell said dryly. She turned and began to walk off. "I'm going to look for the last one," her voice was determined. "Stay here,"  
"No problem, sweetheart," Rick said sarcastically as he took a seat, shielding the sun with his hat. Chell ran off looking for the remaining core, and left the three of us alone.


	3. An Unsettling Feeling

The hot sun hung directly in the sky above us. The four cores sat next to each other a few feet away from me. My empty stomach roared, I knew we had to leave here soon. I sat in front of the cores as I thought about what to do with them.  
"Space! It's gone! I wanna go back! To space!"  
"Will somebody shut him up?" Rick complained.  
"If you have 3 quarters, 4 dimes, and 4 pennies, you have $1.19,"  
"So, um, now what? Are we just going to stay in this ditch?" Wheatley asked me innocently. I looked around, observing the ruins around us. The structure nearest to me had the numbers 694 printed clearly on its wall. The building seemed so familiar. I rose to my feet and walked up to the shelter. "W-wait where are you going?"  
I kicked down the door and walked into the small space. Inside the room were two beds and a sink, toilet and a small table. It resembled the enrichment center dwellings, except the entire room was covered in a blanket of dust and debris. Scanning the room, my eyes fixed on a small blanket dappled with faded balloons on the smaller of the two beds. I daintily picked it up, sending a cascade of dust to the floor. I rubbed its rough texture between my fingers. Then memories of this room flooded into my mind. My mother and father. I gasped and dropped the blanket. To prevent from falling, I balanced myself on a nearby table, it collapsed and I fell to the ground. A slip of paper fluttered to the floor.  
"You alright angel?"  
"Yea," my voice was shaky. The paper came to rest in my lap. I picked it up with a trembling hand. It read,  
'Residence of the Aperture Science Generations Of Testing shelters,  
We are forced to inform you that one of our main propulsion gel pipes has burst underneath the heart of the community. You must evacuate the facility immediately. Grab a portal gun and follow the eastern tunnel. But don't worry, your children are the future! So leave them behind and our Aperture Science dedicated Child Harvesters will get your children as fast as possible before the pressure of the pipe blows the place sky high.  
Thank you for your cooperation!  
Cave Johnson.'  
I swallowed hard and stood up. My entire life spilled out on a single piece of paper. My parents, their faces reflected off my vision. Dust from the room found its way into my lungs, I coughed frantically trying to dislodge the particles. Tears developed in my eyes and felt my way out the door, returning to the cores.  
"Woa, are you ok?" Wheatley looked up at me.  
"My parents," I wheezed, "They lived here, I lived here." I sunk to my knees and leaned up against a stray wall.  
"Oh," his eyes widened. "Are you ok?" I didn't reply, instead I crumpled the note and threw it over their heads.  
"Don't cry, Darlin'," Rick said sympathetically. He rose and walked over to me. "We need to find a way out of here, and fast!" he looked back at his companions."...How do we get out of here?" I looked around nervously. I wanted to leave, this place was beginning to scare me.  
"Ooh! Ooh!" The space core jumped up and ran toward the wall of the ditch. He shoveled a thick layer of mud away to reveal a door. It was grimy and old. I got up and went after him. The small rectangular windows were dull. But I managed to peer through them. Inside them was a staircase leading to the surface.  
"Rick," I summoned the Adventurous core. "You're strong, can you open this door?"  
"Anything for you," He cracked his knuckles and attempted to pry open the door. Ten minutes passed and the door remained shut. "Uhhh..." He cleared his throat and glanced around him. "I was just warming up!"  
Wheatley walked next to us with the Fact core in tow. "Let's all ram into it, maybe we can break through," He pushed up his sleeves.  
"An object at rest stays at rest unless four people decide to break into it," The fact core said, arrogantly.  
"...Alright, then let's do it," The three cores backed away from the door, preparing to slam into it. I stood several feet away with the Space core. We watched as the three broke through the door with an over estimated amount of force and fall into a heap on the inside of it.  
"Well," I said stepping over them, making my way to the stairs. "We can get out of here now," I ran up the staircase with the Space core behind me. The other three lay dazed at the bottom of the stairs before finally joining us at the surface.

(:]-(o)-[:)

Night fell after we reached Chell's campsite with her cube and the door to the facility. I never thought the entrance to Aperture was a tiny little shack. Chell built up the fire and laid down to rest, staring up at the stars. The four of us scattered on the ground and intended to rest as well. They were all in sleep mode accept me. I laid with my back to the group, watching the dark field sway in the wind through tired eyes.  
"You can't sleep, Angel?" Rick whispered rather loudly. He was talking to Chell. I listened to their conversation, appearing to be asleep.  
"Ya," she replied.  
"Me either. I just had a dream I was up against a wild elephant! I won of course..." there was silence. "So, why can't you sleep?"  
"I just can't get those ruins out of my head, and the fact I used to live there. When I went down there, I saw a big tunnel leading that way. It seemed like it went on for a while. And the note in the building said that the city had evacuated,"  
"Oh, well, maybe your parents went through that tunnel!"  
"That's what I thought," she whispered. "There was a note I found that said everyone there evacuated. I think they went into that tunnel. But the only way you can enter the tunnel is with a portal gun... I have to go back and get mine," couldn't believe what I just heard!  
"Wait," the Adventure Core said, "Didn't we just get out of there?"  
"I have to find my parents," she stressed. "If going back to get the tool I need is what it takes, I'll do it,"  
"Alright, but I'm not coming with you, you beautiful adventurer, you,"  
"Fine by me," she let out a yawn.  
"Get some beauty sleep, gorgeous," my tiredness overcame me and I too fell into a deep sleep mode.

The next morning was quiet. I opened my eyes and saw the fire's coals emitting a small stream of smoke into the air. The others were still asleep it looked like. I looked across from me expecting to see Chell still asleep. But she wasn't there. I stood and looked about. She was still nowhere in sight. All that remained was the companion cube and flattened grasses where she laid last night.  
"Wake up!" I stood over to the other cores. "Chell's gone!" The Fact Core was the first to wake.  
"The possibility of her death is 12.34 percent. The other 87.66 percent states she has sprouted wings and flown south,"  
"What? No! She was talking to him last night about..." then it hit me, "Oh no..."  
The other two woke up shortly after. "Good morning space! Sun! Your awake!" the Space Core stretched and yawned.  
"She's gone!" I growled.  
"Who?" Rick said groggily.  
"Well who do you think?" I motioned behind me. "She's gone. Chell's gone! And it's all your fault!"  
Rick looked shocked. "What do ya mean 'my fault'?"  
"I heard you talking to her last night about getting the portal gun back!" I was furious now. "And did you try to stop her? No you just let her leave!"  
"She didn't do that..." the green eyed core said nervously, "Naw she's just... Hiding..."  
"No! She went back there and she's probably dead!"  
"Calm down," he said. The other two were listening intently.  
"We have to go get her," I said at last.  
"What?" The green core raised his voice. "Oh no, I don't want to go back there!" he looked at me quizzically. "Why are you so interested about getting her back? She's a big girl she can handle it,"  
"I feel like I need to redeem her trust somehow. I feel awful for what I did. I feel like this is a way to make her trust me again, go get her and bring her back!" I looked and the worn down shack. Beneath it was an underground prison that Chell was lost in. "S-so if you're not going, then, I'll go alone," I walked over to the front of the battered structure. Its door was wide open. A thick, cold atmosphere hung around its maw.  
"What if she doesn't want to come back?" Rick came up behind me and stared into the darkness. "She seemed pretty determined last night," I didn't consider that.  
"Well, if she doesn't want to come back, I'll help her anyways, just like old times," I faced the Adventure core. "So are you coming or not?" the question was also to the other cores who huddled together by the companion cube.  
"Space! I might lose space!" The Space Core looked into the sky.  
"The likelihood of surviving is 0.34 percent. The likelihood of me joining your quest is- ERROR," the purple core flopped onto his back.  
"Ok... I'll take that as a no," I turned back to Rick. "So, are you coming or not?"  
"Fine," he said dramatically. "But I'm not doing this because you wanted me to," he stepped past me and into the small room of the shack. "Well what are we waiting for?" Rick leaped out and disappeared down the shaft.

* * *

This is my own imagination thinking about what happened to her parents. I don't know if there's a real factual story about what happened to them, but, ya. :/ If there is, I'm sorry, but I'm still continuing!


	4. Reunited

This is a long one! But please play Portal 2 Co-op before! I don't want to surprise/ruin the game :P Thank you!

* * *

I made a mistake. I knew as soon as I jumped down into the cylindrical pit, I had done something terribly wrong. The end of this tube leads right in GLaDOS's chamber.

The downward tunnel seemed endless. I managed to look between a gap in my feet to see the end of the fall. The ground quickly caught up to my long fall boots and I made contact with the circular, grey top of an elevator. I halted for a moment then broke through its roof ending up inside the lift. I stood slowly, avoiding broken bits of ceiling and glass. My dark hair cascaded to my shoulders, it had come undone due to the harsh fall.  
The lights of the panels around the room turned red as they suddenly came to life. I exited the elevator and stood confidently in front of the massive robot suspended just feet from me, GLaDOS. She faced away from me while she spoke.  
"Back so soon?" her corrosive voice boomed in my chest. "I was just beginning to miss you," she turned to face me now, Her yellow gaze rested upon me. "Oh, wait, no I wasn't," I swallowed hard. "And just look at that, you broke the elevator. Not even five minutes in here and you managed to mess something up," The broken lift traveled upwards, sending a shower of glass upon me. I remained focused on GLaDOS.  
"I just came for the portal gun," my voice projected a bit too loudly it seemed. A metal arm appeared, daintily grasping the gun.  
"This thing?" The mechanical beast held up the device tauntingly, just out of my reach. "I was just about to throw it into the incinerator. For real this time. I'll make sure it burns until there's nothing left," A second arm came from above and maneuvered it's way behind my back and grasped me by my shirt collar. I winced as the taught neckline clawed at my throat. "And," GLaDOS continued, "I'll make sure you will go right along with it," the appendage followed the arm holding the portal gun and carried me over to the familiar round opening leading to Aperture's fiery depths. "It's funny," she said on my journey over. "No matter how much you appear to hate this place, it seems, deep down, you love it here. That's why you keep coming back isn't it?" I now dangled above the silver hatch, heat rising from its burning core. "I gave you a chance to leave, and you still came back!"  
"No!" I finally squeaked. "I'll leave! Just let me have the portal gun first!" The fingers released the gun and it fell into the hole, leaving a massive eruption of flames. I braced myself as the claws attached to my collar began to relax. I shut my eyed tight as they let go. Instead of the intense burning of the fire, I met the cold smooth surface of the closed hatch. I looked around in shock.  
"Actually," she said thoughtfully. "I don't think I'll kill you... yet," I looked up at her. She starred back expressionlessly. "I think I'll keep you alive, not as a test subject, I have more than enough of those. No, you'll be more of a trophy, a pet. The one that got away, twice No testing, no escapes, no neurotoxin. Just you rotting away in a cold cell reminiscing of all the fond memories we have shared," I was frozen in horror. What have I done?  
"Why?" I managed.  
"Because," GLaDOS's voice was eerily calm. "It's to make sure you don't go and make some new disaster. I'm just doing myself a favor," the same arm lifted me from the ground and dragged me over to the wall of panels. The panels split to make a path for us as I traveled helplessly along. I didn't have the energy to fight, it was pointless anyways.  
The arm disposed of me in a grey room with walls about four times my height and completely smooth. A small, broken looking bed under a thin blanket inhabited the floor, and of course the familiar toilet. I looked upward to see light shining down into the ceiling-less room.  
"Remember, I am always here to talk if you need me, since you are talking now," GLaDOS's voice echoed around me. "Also remember, you have brain damage. So half of what you say doesn't even matter. But don't get too worked up over that, you have worse things you should be worried about,"

"How far down does this shaft go?" I yelled over the sound of the rushing air around me.  
"How the hell am I supposed to know?" Rick answered vexed. I rode the rest of the way down in silence, wondering what would happen when we landed. I cringed at the thought.  
"Brace yourself!" Rick's voice came from below. Within a few seconds, he landed on something below and I on top of him. We landed on a lift, halted level with a catwalk. The roof of the elevator was the raw, unpainted metal used to build them. I recognized its distinct silver and impact sound from when I was touring manufacturing.  
"Get. Off. Of. Me." Rick grumbled. I stumbled off of him and onto the catwalk. I sat and waited for Rick to follow. He eventually scrambled next to me and lay on his back, moaning in pain. I glanced down through the catwalk's floor. The cylindrical shaft went down for miles it seemed.  
"Thanks for breaking my fall by the way," I said without looking up. Rick sat up next to me and shot me a sideways glare. Ignoring his gesture, I changed the subject. "The whole lift is a bloody wreck," I noticed the broken glass of the elevator's walls. "I wonder what happened," Rick appeared as if he could care less. 'It must be being repaired,' I thought silently.  
Rick stood up and crossed his arms. "Well, we aren't going to get anywhere by just sitting here," he turned and walked down the catwalk. I eventually got up and ran after him. We wandered to the end of the catwalk onto a small landing. The only thing there was a round door on the wall.  
"Damn it," Rick walked up to the door and pounded on its shiny surface. "It's locked," he said finally.  
"No way!" I said sarcastically. "Lemme try to hack it," I elbowed my way past him up to the door. I managed to unlock the computer panel that stored the door's data and hardware. Rick loomed over my shoulder, watching me intently. I slowly turned up to him. "Um, you know I can't do this if your watching," he rolled his eyes and backed up a few feet. Within a few minutes I managed to hack open the door.  
"That's nothing," Rick walked past me into the next door. "I could do that with my eyes closed," He scoffed looking back at me.  
"Fine, when we come upon the next door, I'll let you take care of it," After walking over the threshold, the door hissed and locked shut behind us. The next room was a long hallway with a door on the opposite side. Sounds of machinery melted through the walls from the outside. I felt trapped, just like from my earlier days here. "I wonder where she is," I said quietly, looking up through the high, textured windows.  
Rick started down the hall. "We'll never know if we just stand here, that poor little angel is probably out there somewhere cold and scared..." a smile grew across his face. I shook my head. The thought of Chell scared kept returning to my mind. I clenched my fists and quickened my pace toward the door. It automatically slid aside when I came within a few feet, projecting out a symphony of mechanical noises. I looked back at Rick, he dawdled along in his own fantasy.  
"Come on!" I pressed. He took his time walking over through the door. I bit back my frustration as I went in after him. The expression of frustration turned to shock as I saw the massive room that was concealed by the small door. The shock reflected upon Rick's face as well. The room held a manufacturing line. Upon a closer look, the items being assembled were portal guns! I leaned over the suspended catwalk's rail. Directly below us were the arms of robots grasping blank white shells and transferring them to the conveyer belt. I was stunned by the amount of guns being produced.  
Rick seemed to have awakened from his daydream. "What's all this about?" He looked over the rail suspiciously.  
"Why is She mass producing all of these guns? Chell was her last test subject. Unless She built more of those testing robots," My eyes widened at the thought of an army one hundred strong of those robots.  
"Let's hook up with one of those guns!" Rick hurtled over the railing and landed hard onto the conveyer line. I cursed him and took the stairs after him.  
"You idiot you're gonna get us caught!" I yelled between the movements of the robotic arms in front of me. Without hearing me, or ignoring me, he stooped and picked up one of the portal gun shells and walked the opposite way on the belt.  
"The Portal Gun Assembly Lines are not rides. Please exit the Portal Gun Assembly Lines." I jumped as the announcer's voice filled the room. Rick looked up shocked but continued his investigation. With no other way of convincing him, I crawled beneath the active robots onto the assembly line, mimicking him by walking the opposite way. The line ran forward until disappearing through a rectangular hole in the wall behind me. Another exited a similar hole to the right of me with completed guns. I craned my neck to look behind me, but only to be disappointed to see that Rick was gone.  
"Agggh," I scrambled off the belt onto an air duct between the two conveyers. "Rick?" I yelled.  
"Over here!" He was standing on a landing next to the belt with completed guns. He waved at me with a gun he held in his hand."The Portal Gun Assembly Lines are not rides. Please exit the Portal Gun Assembly Line." I jumped from the thin metal pipe onto the next conveyer. The sudden movement caused me to lose my footing and fall flat on my stomach. In the process of trying to stand, I fell on my back side and almost onto a portal gun. I realized the wall swallowing the completed guns was made of the white portalable surface that conducts portals. I grabbed the gun behind me, realizing I was reaching the exit point of the guns. Shooting above the hole, I desperately looked around for another white panel. Behind Rick was an entire wall of the stuff. I shot my exit point behind him and the portals opened. Miraculously, I stood to my feet and jumped through the portal, just before being sucked under the with the other guns.  
"Woa!" I said after composing myself from exiting the portal. Rick looked at me then back at the conveyer.  
"Well now, I never would have thought you were capable of such adventure!" He skillfully swung the gun in his hand.  
I laughed. "How did you think I became in contro- Uh, never mind. Come on, let's put these back and go look for her," I started to walk over to the assembly lines when Rick blocked me with his arm.  
"Why don't we hang onto them?"  
"But what if She finds out we took them?"  
"She won't," Rick said coolly. "Besides, they might come in handy. You couldn't have come over here without them," He spit shined the glossy white surface.  
"Yes I could! I just, didn't,"  
"Sure," Rick walked past me into the emancipation grill covering the exit door. I followed, feeling the resistance of the gun as I passed through it.  
"I never knew how stressful it is to use these guns…" I had to give Chell credit. She solves tests without a second thought, where as I am still trying to figure out how they work. I really should have appreciated her more, for everything she did for me. I slung the gun over my shoulder and shook the feeling away. I can't let stupid emotions get in the way of what we have to do, I told myself.  
"Where should we start looking?"Rick asked me. He turned to face me, wearing a smug expression, gesturing around us with his hand. I looked around me. Hundreds of test subject relaxation vaults were suspend around us. We were on a small platform protected by a small rail. I swallowed hard.  
"Um, ok," Giving my gun to Rick, I pushed up my sleeves, reached over the railing and knocked on the nearest door. "Hello in there!" I called. "Chell? Are you in there?" no answer came. I stretched farther over the rail and barely tapped at the next door. "Hello? Chell?"  
"Oh come on," Rick groaned. I turned to him.  
"What? You have a better idea?" he shrugged.  
"No but, how do we even know she's here?"  
"Oh," I stepped back over the railing. The two of us stood contemplating for a while. Suddenly, a catwalk rose up on cables from below. I looked down to see that it was covered with the white oval death traps.  
"Aw crap," Rick looked down with me. "Turrets!" I turned to the door behind us to try to escape, but it seemed to have locked. At the rate the catwalk was ascending, I didn't have time to hack it.  
"Move, let me do it," Rick shoved me out of the way and began trying to pry open the door. I followed the line of the cables leading into the ceiling with my eyes. Directly above the incoming platform was a square of white. I shot a portal there and looked around for the second point. Down below the rising platform was a small landing stacked high with cubes. I quickly shot there and watched as the cubes fell through my portals and fall onto the platform of turrets, just as they rose to our level. I shielded my face with my arm as the stray fire from the turrets shot everywhere. I gasped as a startling pain shot through my side. Ignoring it, I grabbed Rick by his shirt collar and dragged him over to the railing.  
"What the?" Rick exclaimed. I pointed down to the platform below. "Oh ho ho, no,"  
"Oh come on!" loosing my patience, I gave him my gun so I could climb over the rail. I took it back once I lined up with the portal. Then, I jumped. As a result from the momentum gained, I fell through the portals with impressive speed and hit down hard on the suspended catwalk. I eased onto my hands and knees before Rick slammed down onto my back.  
"Thanks for breaking my fall," he said mockingly. Suddenly, the catwalk lurched. "Uh oh..." Rick said. Under the sudden weight, one of the thinner cabled snapped and we shot downward, soon after hitting something solid with a loud clank. Rick flew off of the platform upon impact and I meerly bounced and landed once more on the hard metal floor. I curled around my wounded side as the pain flooded to it, as well as applying pressure to it with my palm. Craning my neck, I looked about for the Adventure Core in the gloom. Something shifted underneath a pile of debris, then Rick emerged and limped over to me. I forced myself to a sitting position, panting under the grip of pain in my side.  
"Thanks for breaking my fall by the way," he thumped his hand on my back. I removed my battered glasses and cleaned their lenses on the tail of my untucked shirt. Wherever we were was dark and musty. Replacing my glasses barely helped my visibility. The groans and creaks of the alive facility made the cramped space even more ominous.  
"So now what?" I asked Rick flatly. I heard the slight shuffle of his shoulders, translating that into a shrug. "We can't give up," I rubbed my temples, my hand was slick with my blood, "We came this far!" the last statement unintentionally erupted in a yell. I felt Rick jump beside me.  
Lights flashed to life around us, singing our eyes with a pure white glare. I instinctively shielded my eyes before adjusting to the light and looking around us. I had but a small glance before an unwanted voice surrounded us.  
"You two have done enough sight seeing for today, don't you think?" I covered my face in my hands as I realized the trap we were set up for.  
"I told you She'd catch us," I elbowed Rick hard in the side. He returned one to me, right in my wound. I clenched my fists to keep from screaming.  
"I know what you're here for, and you're not getting it back. But, I could always make room for a few more test subjects,"  
"WHERE'S CHELL?" Springing to my feet, I yelled up toward the ceiling. GLaDOS replied with a deep chuckle.  
"Ah yes, she's spending some well deserved quality time in her Detention Vault. Oh! And don't think I forgot about my plans for you, Moron. Lucky for you I am in a comassionate mood. I see you two have already acquired your portal guns, now all you have to to is sit back," a group of four panels rose up above us, a fifth closing off the top. "Relax," the catwalk beneath us was replaced by a separate panel. "And begin testing," the floor under our feet disappeared to reveal yet another long drop.


	5. Hard to Admit

Sorry this one is kinda short... From this point on the perspective will mainly be focusing on Wheatley. I just wanted to add in this little Chell part before continuing :) Again... apologies for the shortness.

* * *

I woke from my light slumber to the sound of blaring fanfare. Confetti rained down around me from a distributor that had slid in place above my head. I sat up alarmed, looking around unsettlingly. A pair of panels in the wall slid aside and a large monitor took their place. The picture on the monitor was a cake and a turret. The turret danced silently, wearing a colorful cone shaped hat. Bold words were flashing above the small scene.  
"Happy 96.5th anniversary, Aperture science!" the screen suddenly went static after a few seconds, reappearing with GLaDOS's face.  
"I was puttering around in Aperture's history records," she said through the speakers. "And today is the facility's ninety-sixth and a half anniversary," more confetti fell from above. "I got more confetti after you left for a celebration party I had," I rested my head on my knees and looked at my feet. "What? I just got excited! I didn't have to deal with you anymore,"  
"Then why don't you let me go again or kill me or-"  
"You're the one who decided to waddle back down here," I glared at the monitor, she stared back amused it seemed.  
"Don't you remember when we were allies? You would have let me go then, hell, you did! Please, I just want to leave,"  
"Why were you so bent on getting your gun back?" She asked, abandoning my plea. I shifted uneasily. Glade's sensed my anxiety and her voice transformed to acid. "You found something, didn't you?" I attempted to keep a straight face, but my rigid, silent exterior screamed I had something to hide. "I'll be back," Glade's slid off screen.  
Cursing myself, I hung my head in my hands. She's probably going to find out about those shelters I found, and she'll never let me go back. I was rehearsing my poker face when Glade's reappeared on the monitor.  
"A little bit of research tells me that there IS something out there. You found the shelters of the Generations of Testing initiative. Am I right?" I couldn't help but roll my eyes, ratifying her question, in charge of the whole damn place and you don't even know about that. "There's another reason why I should let you stay, to keep you from exploring in places you should really keep your nose out of," the monitor sank back into the wall and the panels resumed they're position. I held back the urge to tell her that I already knew about my parents, but I held my tongue and flopped back onto the bed, my head hanging limp over the edge, staring at my blackish room upside-down.

My mind began to battle itself. If I would have just stayed and tried to figure out a way to follow that tunnel without the aid of a gun, I wouldn't be back in this hole.

But that is impossible. The fence blocking the path seemed bolted tightly and securely.

Then again the place was old, there might have been a weak link.

That seemed unlikely though.

The thing that kept returning in my mind was the small crew of mine I left up on the surface. Are they still up there, not even questioning my disappearance? If that was the case, it didn't surprise me.

I rolled over onto my stomach and closed my eyes. What would happen if they came looking for me? They probably wouldn't make it past the threshold before deciding to turn back. Rick said he didn't want to return to this place, I'm sure the others agreed with that notion. The group is probably squatting up there wondering when I would come back, thinking that my return would be soon. They would be amused to find that I was stuck- and actually wishing for they're help.


End file.
